We’re so in love with and inspired by nature here at NOTCOT ~ Here’s another peek into the world of our resident zoologist and editor, Justine! So amazing and adorable to see how these little birds come to be! Oooh and you can follow her on twitter now ~ @NotCritters… say hi!

With spring on its way, it’s time to get ready for the bounty to come. Here are some photos of the adorable blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) family that made their home in a nestbox on my office balcony last summer. Take a peek at their growth from eggs to fluffy teenagers on the next page!

On fun ways to kick off the weekend, these are like ninja cooking mama ~ or sesame street/eureka’s castle ~ or crazy art video/baby noise/pot clanging remixed… These amazing videos you can see on the next page are The Art of cooking series byCarl Kleiner in collaboration with Eric Severin & Evelina Bratell for IKEA, and made possible by Forsman & Bodenfors. They are mesmerizing and amazing! An awesome follow up to the amazing HEMBAKAT ÄR BÄST cookbook (which still has some of the most incredible recipe photography i’ve laid eyes on). But anyhow ~ TO the videos on the next page!!!

I was curious. I couldn’t resist. And my dad has fallen for the iPad. So how could i not upgrade him today? Luckily we unboxed and got it all set up together! It really is fantastically thin. and there’s still something kind of magical about playing with vidchatting on such a portable (yet nicely sized) screen. And i’ll admit, the magnetic case was a draw… interesting to see how it worked, though in real life, it doesn’t work as well as i’d hoped. While playing with it and using the ipad normally, it awkwardly came off a few times! Anyhow… the form factor is the most fascinating change… i couldn’t help stacking it with the original iPad and my beloved Macbook air as usual! For some reason in a black and white kind of mood today… go check out the close ups and unbox on the next page!

Whether you’re after breakfast with giraffes, the world’s hotspots for food, table tennis or underwater cave exploration, you’ll find something to inspire your next journey in this week’s roundup from NotVentures. To find out more about each post, click on its individual link.

There is a trend of impressive projection advertising going on in Germany ~ through both Mercedes-Benz and BMW. I love that both are not simply about being larger than life, but about eco-friendliness (in the case of BMW, the projections are mainly powered by wind energy) and environmentally aware (the Mercedes one helps you SEE through walls, at bikers, skateboards, and unexpected things coming around the corner) ~ both make fascinating and beautiful uses of the spaces around them. AND! Of course, videos of each on the next page to see them in action!

In case i don’t say it enough ~ you, readers, are awesome! And when i get fun emails with pictures of running into Banksy’s being covered in LA that a reader’s wife sent him… how can i not share? (Thanks, Abner!)

So what’s the story? My wife was with her brothers, sister in law and 2 year old niece hunting for Banksys and they encountered that scene: Banksy was being preserved.
Here is how she describes it: I asked who had told them to cover it up, it had been the owner of the building who had asked them to do this. They only said, “Him, the guy that made it.” Photo credits to Sandra Gonzalez! While it’s tempting to veer into the state of the cultural perception of Banksy… or discuss shark jumping, or impressive impact beyond the street art/art world… How about we just revel in the amusement of turning a corner and running into a team of guys trying to plexiglass the side of a building? Take a peek at the close up on the next page too…

p.s.
it’d be perfect if someone added imagery ON the plexi of the guys putting it up. And then added another layer above that to protect it… and so on… and so on… street art sandwich?

Hotels are where real life happens… and sometimes it’s dressed up like an escapist fantasy from your reality, but bottom line, they are a great way to explore the usability of objects and spaces… it’s like extended shopping? Staying in hotels begins to feel more like that childhood fantasy of hiding out/living in a department store or museum (From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, anyone?) ~ i’m waiting for the moment when i can buy the furniture, wallpaper, faucet fixtures, etc as easily as the bed, robe, and alcoholic minis… Hotel stays are experiments in living. Imaging designing experiences from the furniture to the layout to the closet filled with clothes (like The Tourist when they check into Hotel Danieli and open the closet door) to a living room and desk with gadgets for the perfect party (or meeting)… A way to slip right in and try on what your life could be like. And of course everything is purchasable. It’s one thing to have artists paint a mural… but another to create, could-be-real experiences…

A perfect example is this weekend’s adventure with the Four Seasons Los Angeles and Jawbone Jamboxes! This is the only location in California where you can live with a Jambox before you buy. While Jamboxes have made quite the splash over the holiday season across the design/trend/gadget sites ~ and the packaging is beautiful (see the full poolside unboxing here!) ~ it is a fascinating partnership that Jawbone and the Four Seasons Los Angeles have. Upon checking in to a suite, you are offered one to play with for the duration of your stay. They will even show you how easily it pairs and what you can do with it when you get up to the room! (Seriously, i’m impressed how easy pairing was with my various devices!) And it boosts an impressive 85 decibels ~ perfect for everything from relaxing on the patio, to blasting tunes from your laptop, or watching youtube videos from your phone… all via bluetooth (or headphone jack)… or you can use it as a super speakerphone when bluetoothed to your phone, since it has a mic too! It’s a fun way to try it before you buy… or in my case, fall for it and buy during my stay… luckily the front desk has them in a few colors ready for guests who decide they need one too!

Now… interesting from a design side, they had custom cases made for the Jamboxes, a simple discrete little zip pouch carrying the Jambox and all its cables, as well as instruction manual… take a peek at the Jambox in Four Seasons’ context on the next page!

Meetings just seem like they’d be far more fun around the Duffy London’s Swing Table… especially outside! And now imagine something fun and viney, or some bougainvillea half covering the top, allowing for playful shadows to be cast on the work on the table? Such a fun idea, more pictures of it in red and from different angles on the next page!

I just love this week’s roundup that captures the variety of design goodness we’ve been seeing this week on NOTCOT.org. Self inking, polar ice trays, sheep in Times Square and turbines are all part of the fun. To find out more about each post, click on its individual image.

Becca! From art school roots, to street art, to gallery shows, more street art, to teaching, and back? I love the stylistic/contextual juxtapositions and versatility of her work and experiences! They are very ~ Dick & Jane meet pin ups meet fashion illustrations… in gorgeously refreshing colors… pasted up around the city! I rediscovered her this weekend when popping by the new Street Art Pop Up Store/Gallery… started by Z (who, like many, is part of the Obey Giant family), focusing on creating a space to showcase and sell the works of established street artists. Amongst the work the day after the opening, there was a stack of amazing prints/posters/originals… and i fell in love with a Becca print. No surprise, i suppose, since i even posted the show it came from a show featured on NOTCOT.org ages ago (but i forgot! until i looked it up at home!)… Anyhow, Becca has some amazing work, take a peek at the pics and video on the next page!

Justine has more fascinating and adorable creatures to share with us! She and i grew up surrounded and obsessed with critters big and small ~ while i found inspiration from them but went down a design path, she pursued an animal behavior/zoology phd. So, naturally, the more involved she’s been getting with NOTCOT, we can’t help but share all our passions and inspiration here! Also, just started her up on Twitter ~ follow her @NotCritters.

They may not have fur or feathers, but these little newt larvae still manage to be incredibly cute (between the big fluffy gills and four tiny little fingers and five little tiny toes, I’m smitten). These babies are Smooth or Common newts (Lissotriton vulgaris) that we raised from tiny eggs a few summers ago. See our family album, from egg to eft on the next page!

The idea of a staycation is bull. It has recently been brought to my attention that i spend so much time in hotels in every city except my own (LA!) that i should get to know some of the ones in my backyard better. Ugh, questioning whether this is a ‘staycation’ (i recoil similarly to “jeggings”) led to discourse on what a “vacation” really is… and you can’t knock it till you try it, so when the Four Seasons Los Angeles at Beverly Hills offered me a suite, it seemed like the perfect excuse to give it a try.

So what IS a vacation? A change in perspectives. A break from your everyday. A chance to explore, relax, indulge, be pampered, be left alone, enjoy room service,… whatever it is you need! The Online Etymology Dictionary says: vacation - late 14c., “freedom or release” (from some activity or occupation), from O.Fr. vacation, from L. vacationem (nom. vacatio) “leisure, a being free from duty,” from vacare “be empty, free, or at leisure”. Staycation implies that location matters. But to me (and from the etymology), vacations are merely a state of mind! As i wrote over at OpenForum, vacations can be minutes or hours even, it’s all about perspective!

Anyhow, that is the last you’ll hear of staycations here. Upon arriving at the Beverly Hills Four Seasons, not at all far from home, i was on VACATION! Impeccable service from their kind and friendly staff, new toys to play with (Jambox!), the surprise of a stunning suite on the 15th floor facing east… giving me views over Beverly Hills to Sunset Strip, Hollywood sign, Downtown, and snow capped mountains glistening in the horizon, dining room resulted in a little impromptu dinner party with delectable room service from Culina downstairs (the burrata…mmmm), gorgeous weather meant poolside relaxing to catch up with old friends… Vacation! A definite much needed perspective shift both physically and mentally has left me even more inspired and energized this weekend! So take a peek at the gorgeous views and into suite 1518 on the next page!